Chef, model, writer, food stylist & founder of Qnola (a range of quinoa-based superfood breakfast products we have been known to track down at Selfridge’s food hall) – Danielle Copperman creates simple, healthy food, using natural and wholesome ingredients. Her recipes, which can be found on her blog ModelMangeTout are dairy, gluten and refined-sugar free and feature many re-workings of popular classics, which we are big fans of! We caught up with Danielle to find out more about her food philosophy and current favourites…
Your Eating Ethos – I tend to stick to a relatively paleo diet, valuing organic meat and fish but incorporating vegetables, pseudo grains, nuts, seeds and berries heavily throughout the day. I don’t eat much red meat, but instead choose oily fish like salmon. Foods or ingredients containing gluten, grains, dairy or refined sugar are things you will never find in my cupboards.
Best Way to Breakfast – My favourite breakfast which is delicious, nourishing but also easy and quick to prepare is a smoothie or a pre-made chia seed or quinoa pudding. If I am feeling organised I will soak chia and golden linseeds in almond, cashew or coconut milk with superfoods, berries and nuts to grab in the morning for a quick fix. I try to keep my fridge and freezer fully stocked with berries, avocado, banana, coconut water, almond milk and aloe vera juice, as well as always storing nuts, seeds and superfoods so that I can wake up and throw anything in the blender, knowing the end result with be nourishing and full of flavour. This is the quickest breakfast for me and provides the most instant benefits in terms of energy, hunger satiation and reset metabolism.
Snack Attack – Raw nuts such as almonds, brazil nuts or macadamia nuts or a homemade seed, coconut flake and goji berry mix with cacao nibs and maca powder. Raw chocolate. Homemade beetroot and lemon or raw cacao energy bites (made with dates, coconut oil, nuts, seeds and superfood powders), herbal tea bags or pots of homemade loose leaf tea.
Drinking Dilligently – My favourite pre-made tea is Detox Tea by Pukka. I also make this from scratch with the deconstructed ingredients, including liquorice root, fennel, coriander and aniseed. I also love making hibiscus, mint, ginger and lemon tea with turmeric juice or powder. My favourite juice is a green vegetable juice with kohlrabi to take the edge off a little, and my favourite smoothie is fresh ginger, frozen berries, spinach, avocado, almond milk, maca, acai, aloe vera and charcoal powder.
A Little indulgence – I indulge all the time with nourishing homemade versions of my former guilty pleasures. I’ll make raw chocolate without refined sugar instead of my old favourite chocolate bar. I’ll make nutrient rich cakes from seed or nut flours instead of buying heavily processed cakes. And I’ll make sweet potato chips instead of having greasy potato fries. If I am going to let go of all my morals, I’ll be back home in Bath where I grew up with a cheeseboard of local cheeses, homemade chutneys and crackers.
Superfood You Rate Now – Mucuna Puriens, chaga, reishi, and shilajit. I love them in smoothies, hot drinks, soups or over salads, porridge and chia seed or buckwheat puddings.
Supplement you wouldn’t be without – Omega 3 fish oils, vitamin D, evening primrose oil, charcoal capsules and peppermint capsules, I also always start the day with a probiotic capsule or a shot of liquid probiotics.
Favourite Healthy Dinner Spot – I have discovered so many amazing restaurants, cafes, eateries and juice bars passionate about healthy eating. Without them, my journey from being addicted to sugar and a serious snacker would have been a lot harder! In London, my favourite place is The Good Life Eatery, and my favourite juice place is Juice Tonic. In LA, my favourite place is Moon Juice, but they don’t serve much food, so for food, it would be just across the road at Café Gratitude. There are lovely independent shops all over the world and I love visiting each one as they are so unique, yet so similar in their knowledge and philosophies. It’s like maths: the rules are the same in every country and every language, and it is great to see all corners of the world embracing real foods and natural, nourishing lifestyles.
READ MORE: WHAT I’M EATING NOW – MEGAN MAY
